Canadian Tire Motorsport Park is arguably one of my personal favorite tracks when speaking about the 2017 IMSA schedule.

Back in 2011, I had the tremendous opportunity to drive for local legend Brian Graham and his Formula Ford 1600 team, where we spent many weekends up at CTMP, logging laps and learning how to drive a racing car. Since then I have always looked forward to this event.

Unfortunately CTMP has not been very kind to us these last few years and that trend continued this weekend.

After figuring out exactly what bit us at The Glen, I certainly was looking forward to some form of redemption this past weekend. With the Glen and CTMP being relatively similar tracks (lots of high speed, long duration, high lateral loading corners), lessons learned from the previous weekend were sure to apply.

I was feeling very confident in what we had after the initial testing on Thursday afternoon since we seemed to have such a strong car right from the start.

This was fantastic because it allowed us to focus on performance over the long runs as well as making some very minor adjustments for tuning to the track conditions. Even when looking at how Friday’s official practice sessions went for us, I think we were clearly just as strong, if not the strongest car, from turn 8 to turn 6… very encouraging.

From that point forward I would not climb back into the car until race day, which was fine by me since Cameron seemed to be on a roll in terms of becoming consistently quicker.

I knew what we had in terms of performance with the car and I was very comfortable with that, even after watching how Practice 2, 3 and even qualifying unfolded with a few cars going much quicker than we did, but that was no surprise to me. We focused on our consistency and pace at the end of a stint.

Our race on Saturday afternoon was difficult and disappointing to say the least. On lap 2, Cam and another GS car made side to side contact in turn 1, which in turn, broke our steering rack (no pun intended).

That particular incident was nothing more than just some hard racing, simple as that. I was not too concerned with the news that there was a problem with the front end of the car since Cam was at least able to hold his position and still had some pretty decent speed despite the broken rack (not yet known to us at the time).

Just as it looked like we would be able to work through it, we eventually went a lap down when we made our pit stop/driver change.

The weekend was looking so positive up to that point that it was difficult to accept that winning the race was going to become a whole lot more challenging than it already was. From prior experience and knowing how races in the CTSC can unfold, I knew there was still a shot as long as I got in the car and pushed.

At least to me, as soon as my race began, it was over just as quickly. Pushing hard out of pit lane, I immediately approached ST traffic on the exit of Turn 2 and took the lane that was available on the inside upon entry of Turn 3.

Well before track out of the corner, the right front of the Mini met the left rear of our car and unfortunately spit the ST car into the wall at the exit, ruining their race while causing some pretty significant damage to our car.

At the time I was frustrated more than anything because our day just went from bad to worse and basically sealed our fate for the final hour of the race.

Afterwards, I was able to find James and Nate (the drivers of that Mini), and Luis (owner of the Mini JCW team) to make sure James was ok, and luckily he was. Not a happy camper, obviously, but physically fine.

Two races in a row now I have had to adapt and use a conservative, defensive mindset mid-race, rather than focusing on attacking for a victory.

This one hurt even more than the Glen because I believed that we had a very competitive car moving onto race day. I feel for the Bodymotion crew, our supporters Trim Tex and Delaware Investments, and Cam, for failing to capitalize on such a strong weekend up to that point.

We are still a full two weeks away from Lime Rock and I already want to get back at it. We had a great car there last year and I expect the very same this year, especially with all of the lessons learned over the past ten days.

If there is one positive to come out of this last weekend at CTMP, it is the fact that our championship position is the very same leaving as it was when we arrived. It certainly could have been a whole lot worse considering how eventful the race was for us.

For now though, it is time to reset, refocus, and plan on how to attack the final five races of the 2017 Continental Tire Challenge season.

Riccardo Agostini and Trent Hindman finally claimed their first victory of the season in the weekend’s second Super Trofeo North America race at Watkins Glen International. Hindman brought the No. 1 Prestige Performance entry, representing Lamborghini Paramus, home to the checkered flag, holding off a late-race charge from Austin Versteeg who closed to finish just .541 seconds behind the race winner.

The Agostini and Hindman duo made best use of their pole starting position, controlling the race from the green flag.

“I knew we had a great car,” said Hindman. “Riccardo [Agostini] did a fantastic job in qualifying on Friday morning and put the thing on the pole. I was definitely hanging on at the end but overall it was a fantastic race and I’m just so happy to end the weekend on a high note and move on to Road America with a win.”

Versteeg’s second-place finish overall also netted him his second ProAm class victory after a similarly impressive performance from the 18-year-old at the season-opening round at Circuit of The Americas. The driver of the No. 7 DXDT Racing entry, representing Lamborghini Dallas, fell back early in the race, but fought back to have a mighty battle after the mandatory pitstop window with eventual third-place overall finisher Ashley Freiberg.

After getting around Frieberg, Versteeg set off in chase of Hindman, who had taken over driving duties from Agostini at the pitstop. Setting a series of fast laps, he cut the lead to less than a second by race’s end, but the young driver ran out of time and had to settle for the second step on the overall podium.

“Everyone was super tight going up the Esses at the start and I lost a few positions there,” said Versteeg after the race. “I knew we had a really good car for the long run and I just had to be smart in traffic. “Thanks to all the team for such a great bounce back. Hopefully Road America comes fast.”

With her third-place finish, Freiberg made history, becoming the first woman to stand on the overall podium of any of the worldwide Lamborghini Super Trofeo series. The 25-year-old leapt up from her fourth place starting position at the green flag, taking and holding second place for much of the race until she was caught by Versteeg. Eventually, she brought her No. 30 DAC Motorsports entry, representing Lamborghini Palm Beach, to the checkered flag second in the Pro category, proving her race-winning potential in only her fourth Lamborghini Super Trofeo start.

The Amateur class victory went to Brian Thienes who made up for what he thought was a missed opportunity in Race 1 at Watkins Glen. Thienes started from the pole in both races and fell back at the green flag of each. While he was unable to recover in the first race of the weekend, the driver of the No. 17 US RaceTronics entry, representing Lamborghini Beverly Hills, had better luck in Race 2, battling with Patrice Brisebois in the second stint for the class lead. Thienes prevailed on Lap 19, and kept the position until race’s end, earning his second victory of the season.

“It felt like the team got some redemption and we were fast all weekend in our class,” said Thienes. “Congratulations to the team for putting the car back together and doing a really good job with a really good set up.”

The LB Cup class win came down to the narrowest of margins, as Ryan Hardwick eked out his second triumph of the weekend by .081 seconds over J.C. Perez. Hardwick finished second on the track to Perez in his No. 2 Dream Racing Motorsport entry, representing Lamborghini Atlanta, but a 1.5-second penalty was issued to Perez for a pit stop that did not meet the minimum time requirement. During the race, Hardwick did not know about Perez’s impending penalty and was pleasantly surprised by his winning result.

“I had no idea, my team wasn’t telling me,” said Hardwick. “They were obviously telling me to push, but I had no idea. [Perez] had some bad luck in traffic and it slowed him down. But I’ve raced a long time and I know that it’s not over until it’s over.”

The winner of Race 1 and championship leader in the Pro category, Richard Antinucci, encountered problems after starting from the outside of the front row in the weekend’s second race. The No. 16 Change Racing driver, representing Lamborghini Carolinas, finished in 16th position overall and fifth in the Pro category, breaking his perfect streak of three race wins.

The 2015 series champion still leads in the Pro category in provisional championship points, but Race 2 at Watkins Glen proved that the competition won’t make things easy for him as the series heads on to Road America in one month’s time.

Tape-delayed coverage of Watkins Glen International will air on the CBS Sports Network on July 30, 2017 at 5:30 p.m. ET. The coverage will feature live commentary on both the broadcast and live streams.

Lamborghini provided world-class hospitality this weekend for clients and guests of Lamborghini dealers. Guests also participated in the IMSA Hot Lap Experience – high-speed rides around the circuit in a Lamborghini.

The next Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America event will be August 4-6 at Road America as part of the Continental Tire Road Race Showcase in conjunction with the IMSA Weathertech SportsCar Championship.

POST-RACE QUOTES

TRENT HINDMAN (No. 1 Prestige Performance, winner, first Pro):

“I knew we had a great car. Riccardo [Agostini] did a fantastic job in qualifying on Friday morning and put the car on pole. The only question was how was it going to be at the end of the race and I think the time sheets will speak for itself. I was definitely hanging on at the end but overall it was a fantastic race and I’m just so happy to end the weekend on a high note and move on to Road America with a win. Riccardo and I have been knocking on the door of a win overall for the last three races now. Yesterday was definitely a disappointment running second and having a wheel come off, but it was just a great way to wrap up the weekend. Big thanks to the Prestige Performance/Wayne Taylor Racing guys for all their efforts. Just phenomenal weekend put together by everybody. We’ve got a lot to learn from this weekend so we’re going to go back and reset and refocus for Road America, but again, just very happy with the result that we have.”

RICCARDO AGOSTINI (No. 1 Prestige Performance, winner, first Pro):

“For me the race was great. I started from the pole so not a big deal. We had a tricky start with [Richard] Antinucci so I just tried to make my own pace and to gain some time lap-by-lap. We were unlucky yesterday. The last lap we had a tire problem so we had to stop. But I am pretty confident for the next races.”

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y., July 3 – With a fourth place finish in Saturday’s IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge race at Watkins Glen International with their Bodymotion Racing Porsche Cayman GT4, Cameron Cassels and Trent Hindman retained their point lead in the top class, Grand Sport, heading into next weekend’s race at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.

The Ocean Township, N.J.-based team’s entry in the Street Tuner class, another Porsche driven by Drake Kemper and Devin Jones, was as high as third and finished tenth in its class at the conclusion of the two-hour race on the historic 3.4-mile, 11-turn road course.

Cassels and Hindman, the defending race winners, were in line for a podium finish of third until Nico Rondet passed Hindman with only 7:07 remaining. They almost got it anyway when the leader, Al Carter, spun across the track on the last lap, but Matt Plumb made a late charge to grab the final podium position from the Wayside, N.J.-based driver. It was very close, as Hindman was only 0.369 of a second behind Plumb at the checkered.

Cassels, of Coldstream, British Columbia; qualified their No. 12 Porsche sponsored by Bodymotion, Delaware Investments and Trim Tex in tenth place. He advanced to ninth at the start and ran in that position throughout his stint. He pitted for fuel and rain Continental tires on lap 16 when the weather turned nasty, and the race was red flagged at the halfway point due to lightning in the area.

The bad weather abated and Cassels was back in ninth when he pitted a second time under yellow with 52:40 remaining for fuel, slick tires and Hindman to take over. The pit stop was excellent and Hindman was fifth when the race resumed with 43 minutes remaining to set up the hectic closing minutes.

Hindman successfully avoided all sorts of opportunities to become involved in accidents. Some examples included when Robin Liddell lost power right beside him with 16:71 to go; when Plumb went on and off the track next to him coming out of the Inner Loop with 10:12 to go, and when Carter spun across the track on the final lap. Afterwards Hindman said he was also dealing with a broken sway bar or shock throughout his stint.

Kemper qualified seventh in the No. 31 Porsche Cayman, which is sponsored by VeriStor, Bodymotion, the Apex Sports Car Academy and Delaware Investments. He took off like a rocket at the drop of the green flag and was fourth by lap two. The rookie from Thermal, Calif. moved into third on lap five when Sarah Cattaneo’s car lost its clutch. Derek Jones (no relation to Devin) passed him on lap 11 to push him back to fourth, but he stayed in that position before dropping to tenth after a pit stop around lap 20. He clawed his way back up to seventh before he pitted for Devin Jones to take over around lap 24. Jones fell to 12th and then 13th after that round of pit stops and some time lost getting around a lapped car.

Jones persevered, however. The Mooresville, N.C.-based driver was back in tenth with 5:24 to go after Pumpelly stopped in Turn 9. He continued to push, setting the car’s fastest lap of the race on lap 41. Hindman’s fastest lap was also near the end of the race, as he set it on lap 40.

The race will air on FOX Sports 1 on Sunday, July 9 from 10 a.m. to noon Eastern.

“At the beginning of the stint the car seemed fine. There were a lot of grip issues as we went along; the track definitely started to rubber up and we started to slide around more. The car was great and was well prepared. We were in a great position and we were very confident going into this race.

“The big picture is the season is one long race, so to come in fourth today still puts us in a great position in the points race. We walk out of here holding our heads high because we maintain the points lead and the car is still in one piece.

“It was super-sunny for a long time. Then as soon as you climb the hill out of Turn 7 you look up and see a curtain of water coming. We were all in the same boat out there, literally. It definitely got slick really fast. It didn’t last a long time, but when it did open up it sure dropped a lot of water on the track.

“This is definitely a rhythm track; that’s why I like it so much. Drake Kemper mentioned that it’s like a street course with elevation changes. You have to get into a rhythm. It took me a little bit to get that rhythm. I didn’t lose a lot of time, but I definitely could have made up some positions. I had more pace than a couple cars, but I just couldn’t get around them early. By the time I seemed to find my rhythm we were catching ST cars, and then there was traffic all around, and then the skies opened up.

“A lot of our families were here this weekend and they’ll be at Mosport next weekend. We really want to get back onto the top step of the podium. We definitely would have taken another podium position today, but coming out of here still with the points lead and the car still in one piece, that’s a success.”

“I’m not sure; maybe we had broken a sway bar or we might have lost a shock at some point in the race. Cameron had warned me on the radio when I got in that the car was a bit to handle, and definitely different than the package we had in practice. That truly showed itself once the race went green, especially on these stop-and-go restarts. It was definitely tough.

“But overall, we’re in this for a championship. It would have been very easy for me to put my hands up and say this isn’t our day and just hang out and let people go, but that’s not what I’m about, it’s not what Bodymotion Racing is about, it’s not what Trim Tex is about, and it’s not what Cameron Cassels is about.

“We’re in a fight for a championship all the way until the bitter end. I think we were sixth near the end but we got a fourth out of it. We picked up two positions at the very end.

“It’s disappointing that we couldn’t come home with a win, but I thank the Bodymotion Racing crew for pulling together.

“Continental [Tires] gave us a brand new, very much improved tire for this year. We love it. But at the end of the day when you have a major mechanical issue, you’re just along for the ride really, and we did our best to manage and negate the damage. I think this was a very positive day in terms of the championship.”

While packing the race gear that I needed for the weekend, I did my usual last minute check of the weather to see if the forecasts had changed.

Nope. It still appeared to be a pretty nasty Fourth of July weekend… lots of rain everyday, even strong thunderstorms being predicted.

For most, that was the last piece of information they wanted, especially when heading to the racetrack for a weekend of competition. For me, however, it was exactly what I wanted to hear (aside from the prediction of thunderstorms, of course).

There are not many other things I enjoy more in this world than racing in the rain.

A situation that I used to loathe more than anything else, at some point in my karting career I found that if I ever wanted to become competitive and win races in adverse weather conditions, I must learn to love it, and I did.

So, what does any of that have to do with driving a Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport GS in the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge, you may ask?

The possibility of a wet race gave me the utmost confidence that we had more than a solid shot at victory and a race where the Bodymotion Racing team, Cameron Cassels, and I could really do some damage in the GS championship and extend our points lead.

Unfortunately it didn’t all go down the way I had hoped, actually very much the opposite, but nonetheless it was still a positive event for us.

Working hard on our car all throughout practice and qualifying, I think it’s pretty fair to say that Cam and I were pleased with what we had underneath us.

Although we did not lead any practice session, we knew we were very strong in the areas that we could directly control, so you really cannot ask for much more than that.

Some minor set up changes had helped, but for the most part we rolled off the truck in fairly decent shape, which is always confidence inspiring, especially on these race weekends where you really do not have much time for tuning your equipment.

In one of the strangest qualifying sessions I’ve seen in quite some time with some ST cars that unfortunately found the infamous “blue bushes” on their in-laps along with a drying racetrack and a fundamental misunderstanding of the rule book by the GS field under red flag conditions, it had made the last ditch qualifying lap put in by Cameron just that much more important. We would roll off the grid in 10th for Saturday’s two hour race.

Seeing some of the intense rain storms just passing the Watkins Glen International circuit to the north and a steady line of dark clouds following, this is where I was really hoping that, for once, the Weather Channel was correct in their predictions for sustained rain.

Our race was off to a very clean start with Cam netting one or two extra positions at turn one and he was immediately taking off, trying to catch the next pack of cars ahead. Approaching the 45 minute mark, the rain started coming down. Hard.

I loved what I was seeing since I knew this was our legitimate shot at a victory. Unfortunately as soon as that storm had rolled in, it was right back out with only a stretch of cloudless blue sky following. Damn.

Whatever, I was still confident in the car that I had underneath me to be able to take advantage of the restart following a lengthy red flag for weather and push to the front, but that did not happen.

I found myself outgunned pretty quickly and all I could do was defend as hard as possible and minimize the loss of ground in the championship.

We finished P4; a gift if you ask me since our pace was not very close to that position. That one was hard fought to say the least, and with the efforts by Cam and the Bodymotion team, we head to CTMP with our GS championship lead in tact.

With some frustration following the CTSC race, I was forced to quickly let go of it and move on, as I had to be ready to fight for a victory in Lamborghini Super Trofeo race two with Riccardo Agostini and the Prestige Performance/Wayne Taylor Racing team.

The pressure was on since Ricky put together one hell of a qualifying lap and put the No. 1 car on the pole! The guy went on to lead every single lap of his stint, without too much pressure from behind, and I was fortunate enough to hop in and do the very same.

For me, it came right down to the finish line but a win is a win and I sure was glad to be leaving my favorite track in the world on a high note.

Once again I thank the entire Bodymotion Racing team, Trim Tex, Prestige Performance, Wayne Taylor Racing, Lamborghini Squadra Corse, Cameron, and Ricky for making it possible for me to run, with success, in two very competitive championships.

I’m incredibly lucky to work with such phenomenal groups of people. CTMP is a little more relaxed in terms of scheduling but the intensity will very much be the same as Cam and I continue our fight for the GS championship.

FOR THE 2017 EDITION OF THE YOUNG DRIVERS PROGRAM

The Young Drivers Program, established in 2014, was the first of the four talent programs created by Lamborghini Squadra Corse to give young drivers the opportunity to build a career in Motorsport. Now in its fourth edition, the Young Drivers Program is the “scholarship” for drivers (aged 17-26) already racing in the Super Trofeo one-make series in Europe, Asia and North America.

After examining the potential members to be included in the 2017 program during winter tests and the first races of the three continental series of the Super Trofeo, Lamborghini Squadra Corse has selected the 23 participants who will take part in the 2017 edition. Some drivers of the past edition have been reconfirmed, such as Ben Gersekowski, Loris Spinelli, Nicolas Costa, Bar Baruch and Rik Breukers.

Some others have been promoted and have gained access to the upper level, the GT3 Junior Program, starting from the 2016 Super Trofeo world champion, Dennis Lind.

Many, instead, are the new entries who are going to become part of the Lamborghini Squadra Corse family: for example the young drivers who emerged during the winter in the new Super Trofeo Middle East series, such as the champion of the series Axcil Jefferies, the German Carrie Schreiner and her teammates Jack Bartholomew and Richard Goddard, to continue with the promising Jonathan Cecotto, Kikko Galbiati, Mikael Grenier, Jan Kisiel, Christopher Dreyspring and Yuki Nemoto, who are demonstrating their potential in the Super Trofeo Europe. Brandon Gdovic and Trent Hindman are instead standing out in the North American series.

Here is the complete member list of the 2017 Young Drivers Program of Lamborghini Squadra Corse.

Alain Valente

Alex Jia Tong Liang

Arthur Janosz

Axcil Jefferies

Bar Baruch

Ben Gersekowski

Brandon Gdovic

Carrie Schreiner

Cecotto Jonathan

Kikko Galbiati

Christopher Dreyspring

Jack Bartholomew

Jan Kisiel

Lorenzo Veglia

Loris Spinelli

Lucas Mauron

Mikael Grenier

Morgan Haber

Nicolas Costa

Richard Goddard

Rik Breukers

Trent Hindman

Yuki Nemoto

Young Drivers’ activities during the Super Trofeo weekends

Being a member of the Young Drivers Program of Lamborghini Squadra Corse means having access to a wide range of professional growth opportunities. During every round of the Super Trofeo, for example, the young drivers are assisted on track by a new staff specifically set up by Lamborghini Squadra Corse for this season: Raffaele Giammaria, director of the Federal School ACI Sport, is the new supervisor of the youth programs of the Motorsport department. The experienced Italian driver, together with the Federal School instructors, has the task of teaching all the necessary know-how to young drivers. Before each race, drivers receive a dossier specifically prepared to inform them about the sporting regulations and race track. Over the weekend, they attend meetings to discuss the course of free practice and qualifying sessions and another fixture is the track walk, i.e. a walk on track to discover, centimeter by centimeter, all the secrets of the circuit where they are going to race.

After each round, drivers are required to compile a report, identical to that written by the Lamborghini Factory Drivers, in which everyone makes a technical and personal account of the race weekend, to look for any minimum improvement margin for the following races.

Training camp in Imola and Sant’Agata Bolognese

But the most important events are the training camps organized by Lamborghini Squadra Corse throughout the year, namely specific sessions involving both the drivers of the Young Drivers Program and those of the GT3 Junior Program. The sessions take place in Imola and Sant’Agata Bolognese in June and September, with three days of full immersion in the Lamborghini world. In the factory, the drivers have the opportunity to get to know the brand, by visiting the production lines, the museum and the various departments. The Imola circuit is where training takes place: the young drivers have the opportunity to participate in test sessions and in the development of Huracán Super Trofeos and GT3s, together with the engineers of Lamborghini Squadra Corse and Pirelli. By driving cars on track for development purposes and not for competing, drivers can sharpen their sensitivity and learn how to best communicate their sensations to race engineers, which is a crucial aspect in the training of drivers.

Then there is athletic preparation, under the supervision of performance coaches specialized in Motorsport, who have the task of monitoring and improving the drivers’ physical preparation through targeted training sessions. Lastly, there is also theory, with classroom sessions about communication, behavioral notions, racecar engineering and Lamborghini road cars. In this way, drivers can become complete professionals.

Certified Lamborghini Accademia instructors

One of the opportunities offered to youth program drivers is to become instructor drivers of the Lamborghini Accademia, the official driving school open not only to Lamborghini customers but also to all enthusiasts. Those who prove to have the right attitude to carry out this parallel activity are further trained to practice this profession, which is different from being a professional driver. To increase the quality of its services, Lamborghini Squadra Corse obtained the certification of all its Accademia drivers/instructors through a practical and theoretical training course held in Vallelunga at the Federal School ACI Sport last January.

Lamborghini Squadra Corse certified Tüv ISO 9001

Since the beginning of 2017, Lamborghini Squadra Corse, the Motorsport department of Automobili Lamborghini, has been certified ISO 9001. To award this certification, the TÜV Italia team verified the certification, development, manufacturing and assistance processes of race cars as well as the organizational and management aspects of competitions during sporting events on European tracks.

By handing in the certification to Stefano Domenicali, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of Automobili Lamborghini, the Managing Director of TÜV Italia, Oliver Jacob, wanted to emphasize how Lamborghini Squadra Corse dealt with the complexity of this certification with a high level of commitment, a characteristic of the sporting tradition of Automobili Lamborghini.

AUSTIN, Texas, May 5 – Bodymotion Racing of Ocean Township, N.J. regained the point lead in the top class, Grand Sport, in the IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge (CTSCC) series Friday afternoon with a thrilling third-place finish in the series’ two-hour race at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) road course in Austin, Texas.

Co-drivers Cameron Cassels of Coldstream, British Columbia, Canada, and Trent Hindman of Wayside, N.J. had to conserve both their Continental tires and their VP Racing fuel in order to finish on the podium with their Bodymotion Racing Porsche Cayman GT4 No. 12, which is sponsored by Bodymotion, Delaware Investments and TrimTex. They also had to battle the track conditions, as the heat of the day on this Cinco de Mayo holiday made the 3.4-mile, 20-turn road course very greasy, especially in the late stages of the 47-lap race.

Cassels qualified 12th but he had worked his way into the top 10 by lap seven despite conserving the car so Hindman could make a push at the end. As it turned out the driver change occurred during one of two full-course cautions on lap 21. The Bodymotion pit crew performed flawlessly on the stop. Coupled with some problems suffered by some rivals, Hindman was able to start work from the fourth position when the green flew again on lap 26 with 47 minutes remaining.

From that point on Hindman applied pressure to everyone around him. He took third on lap 28 from Dillon MacHaven, passed Marc Miller for second on the following lap, and even led lap 35 after a stirring battle with Robin Liddell. Two McLarens driven by Matt Plumb and Nico Rondet then took command, but Hindman kept the pressure up the rest of the way for the podium finish.

Bodymotion Racing’s entry in the Street Tuner class, the No. 31 Porsche Cayman driven by Devin Jones of Mooresville, N.C. and Drake Kemper of Thermal, Calif., was unfortunately withdrawn from the event after a fire during the preliminary action. Jones was driving at the time but luckily was not hurt. Bodymotion, Veristor, the Apex Sports Car Academy and Delaware Investments sponsor the No. 31 entry.

Friday’s race will be broadcast on Fox Sports 1 on Saturday, May 13 from 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Eastern time.

The next event is part of the Sahlen’s Six Hours of the Glen June 29-July 2 at Watkins Glen International in Watkins Glen, N.Y. July is a busy month for the series, as it will also appear at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park in Bowmanville, Ontario on July 7-9 and at Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, Conn. on July 21-22.

“I was happy to get through it [the race]. Coming into this weekend I got sick just before I arrived here, and have been trying to battle a cold. Having a cold in Texas in the heat is no fun. We were on the pace when we needed to be, so it was nice. We used the practice sessions to get our set-up and pace. We kept at a good race pace during the race. We were always in the hunt. Fuel was the biggest thing for us today. I can’t believe we actually finished third without running out of fuel. Trent did a great job with full conservation. In the end it was third place, but for us it’s a big points day. We lost a lot of ground at Sebring but this makes up for it.”

“It was definitely nerve racking, especially in the beginning. We just weren’t sure how our strategy would play out. Cameron definitely got up to speed well, but we had a hard time in traffic. I experienced that too during my stint. Fortunately everything worked out in our favor. We got a bit lucky with some yellows right in the middle of the race, but then the pressure was on when I kept hearing ‘Conserve fuel, conserve fuel, conserve fuel!’ You’re trying to push hard and go forward but you have to hold yourself back a little bit. I was definitely worried about that.

“At the end of the day Mark Manning, our engineer, gave us a fantastic car. We had a really great strategy, but unfortunately we didn’t quite have the straight-line speed of the McLarens, That’s okay; we’re going to be strong the rest of the year; I know that much. Big thanks to the Bodymotion guys and Trim Tex. Cameron drove very well all weekend long and did his job beautifully as always. Now we’ll go on to Watkins Glen, which is my favorite!”

Geoff Abel, competition director, Bodymotion, Inc.:

“Today was a full team victory from car preparation, to the set-up, to the strategy, to the guys behind the wall. We had flawless execution all day. What we needed today was points. Today was all about bringing home some points, which we were able to do and have now retaken the points lead.”

For the last three years that IMSA has made the trip to Circuit of The Americas, it’s conveniently been right at the end of summer and the term “Texas hot” could not become any more applicable.

In 2015, for example, while driving the Fall-Line Motorsports BMW E92 M3 GS car, we experienced a race day which saw a high of 105 degrees ambient temperature.

Since that lovely, high revving, S65 V8 sits so low and so far back, with headers that run almost right underneath your feet, it did get quite warm in the cockpit. So hot, in fact, that the bottom of my left shoe heel was no longer attached to my shoe but instead to the floorboard on which it was resting.

I have photos to prove it! Luckily during this trip to COTA, we in the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge had really beautiful weather to go racing, with no melting shoes…

With over a month since our last, character-building race at Sebring, Cameron Cassels, the Bodymotion Racing crew, and I needed to have a solid weekend in order to stay in the GS championship hunt. Fortunately for us, we did just that.

COTA has historically been good to me, finishing second in last year’s GS race with Cameron and even winning a crucial nail biter in 2014 with John Edwards.

I have to admit that I was feeling relatively confident, despite being advised that the Porsche may not be competitive at the super technical, 3.427-mile track.

Watching the MotoGP race from a few weeks prior, it appeared that track conditions had seemed to have deteriorated quite drastically compared to the years prior.

As we witnessed the changes first hand during Wednesday afternoon’s track walk, the asphalt itself seemed a lot more weathered compared to September 2016, but more importantly, feeling where significant bumps have developed in key areas of the track made setting up our car a little bit more challenging than normal.

Since our race “weekend” is only two days, it goes by blindingly fast, so during Thursday practice it is just that much more important to make the most of every single lap you are given.

For me, it’s all about getting our car dialed in for the long run as well as making sure Cameron gets enough time to re-acclimate himself to the track.

Small changes between practice one and two on Thursday lead to big gains in lap time heading into Friday’s race, so we were quite happy with the weapon we had brought to play with.

Cameron did his normal rock solid job in qualifying and the opening stint of the race, setting personal best laps along the way, which in turn is always confidence inspiring for me and the Bodymotion crew.

Again, knowing that our Cayman GT4 was not supposed to be the best car at this track, we knew that great pit stops and a modified strategy would be necessary in order to have a shot at victory.

A full course yellow right around the 45 minute mark was exactly what we needed, but now this turned into a fuel mileage race… which is always how it seems to go around COTA.

A fantastic stop by the Bodymotion crew and a great strategic call by engineer extraordinaire Marc Manning moved us up to P5 for the restart, although now it was a test of who could make it to the end of this two hour event with only one stop.

I was most definitely sweating this one out, because not only was it my job to push forward and try to make up positions, but now I also had to try and pass a handful of phenomenal drivers all while saving fuel. Sweet.

Fortunately some patience and a lot of luck put us in the lead… for roughly two corners, and the momentum lost by battling hard with Robin allowed both McLarens to scream on by.

We had great pace though the first half of the racetrack but once we got to the tight, point and shoot sort of corners that we find in sectors two and three around COTA, I just couldn’t get close enough to properly attack.

With about ten minutes to go in the race, our focus shifted back to simply making it to the finish without running out of fuel! Hectic fuel saving and quite the nerve-wracking last lap that felt like it would never end gave us a solid P3 finish.

Of course we are always thinking about how we could have gotten those final two positions for victory, but for now, we were pleased that we had simply survived with a better than expected result.

It was also very encouraging to hear that we would head to Watkins Glen as the GS championship leaders.

Immediately after finishing the GS race, it was a full on sprint back to the support paddock to change driving suits and get ready for Lamborghini Super Trofeo race one.

I know… I have zero right whatsoever to say anything negative about hopping out of one car and getting directly into another, especially when its a Porsche to a Lamborghini!

I would just briefly like to mention that I am very thankful to be back in Super Trofeo this season with the Prestige Performance/Wayne Taylor Racing team that I had been so fortunate to have success with last year.

Our weekend went quite well over there, as my new co-driver Riccardo Agostini and I brought home a pair of second place finishes in the Pro category.

After almost three straight weeks on the road concluding with an incredibly busy yet successful three days in Austin, it’s nice to be home for a few days.

As always, a big thank you to Cameron and the Bodymotion Racing team, along with the Prestige Performance crew for their efforts towards some solid results this past weekend.

The Bodymotion Racing Porsche Cayman GT4 had a new look this weekend thanks to Joe Koenig and all of my friends at Trim-Tex! Looking forward to sharing much success together with them as we did just a few years ago.

Hopefully Cam and I will do as John and I did in 2014, grab hold of this GS championship lead and never look back! On to Watkins Glen..

How anxious to get back in the car are you after the long layoff after Sebring?

“Very. Not sure if anxious is necessarily the word though, I think in this scenario it’s more of a motivation to go racing again following a difficult race weekend such as Sebring. Looking for redemption possibly?

“The time certainly passes quickly though, especially because we have been very busy at Bodymotion Racing preparing for next week’s Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge race at Circuit of The Americas.

“For us it is really just a matter of going out and proving to ourselves that no matter what adversity comes our way, we will still find a way to win.”

How much do you and your co-driver Cameron Cassels stay in contact during the time between races?

“It’s constant communication. Cam is a guy who is incredibly motivated to improve his craft behind the wheel of our Cayman GT4, or of course any car he drives for that matter, so we will always be comparing notes prior to arriving to the track.

“It’s definitely a very eye opening experience for me to be a part of his development as a driver because I too learn a lot about myself in the process. It’s a win-win for everybody.”

In your recent column for Sportscar365, you mentioned that you and Cameron were still new to the team at this time last year. How much has the year of chemistry that you have developed helped this year?

“Although at this point last year Cameron and I were new to working together alongside Bodymotion Racing, it’s pretty safe to say that we were all on the same page right away despite the inexperience.

“Chemistry when working with a group of people is not something that can be created artificially. Funny enough, I was already very close to everybody over at Bodymotion since the shop is roughly five minutes away from where I’ve lived all my life.

“For a while at the end of 2013 and all throughout 2014 while I was driving with Fall-Line in GS, I was the guy sweeping floors, mounting and dismounting tires, loading and unloading trailers, etc.

“Those experiences alone made this whole process of learning how to work together specifically with this team in a highly competitive environment much, much more straightforward and Cam really fit in well to that dynamic.”

You finished second at COTA last year. Does that set the bar for this year’s race?

“It does, but that is something we cannot focus on alone once we get on track next week.

“It’s great going into a race weekend knowing that you had success at that particular circuit in the past but for the most part it does not mean that the return will go as well as you expect sometimes; just look at Sebring for us between 2016 and 2017.

“Taking what we learned from last year and applying it once we get on track next week will prove to be advantageous, but we still have much to learn in order to stay ahead of both new and existing teams in the Continental Tire Challenge.”

What track that you haven’t driven before would you most like to get the chance to drive?

“Ah, tough question! I’ve been very fortunate to drive a lot of very, very special circuits over the last 3-4 years but I’ll still maintain that Watkins Glen is the greatest place ever. Period.

“There are certainly some tracks that are better than others, but I don’t think I have ever climbed out of the car and said to myself, ‘Wow this track is just terrible.’

“When it comes to a track that I would like to drive at some point, Nurburgring is at the top of the list for me since, well, it’s the Nurburgring. Came really close to running a few VLN races in 2015 but unfortunately that didn’t work out.

“Imola is another track that I hear is absolutely phenomenal and it definitely seems like it. Hoping to get there by the end of this year if all goes to plan!”

BROWNSBURG, Indiana (April 25, 2017) – Coming off a series-high four championships last season, Prestige Performance and Wayne Taylor Racing announced today their plans to run a four-car program in the 2017 Lamborghini Super Trofeo North American Series. In 2016, the two-car Prestige Performance racing effort saw incredible success as it took home the Lamborghini Super Trofeo North American PRO Driver, PRO AM Driver, Team Champion and Dealer Champion titles. Prestige Performance and Wayne Taylor Racing have organized an impressive complement of talented and competitive drivers to debut their stable of Lamborghinis on the challenging 3.4-mile, 20-turn Circuit of the Americas road course in Austin, Texas at the Super Trofeo season opener, May 4 to 6.

“Wayne Taylor Racing is excited to step into the 2017 season with such a great list of drivers and to have David Wagener returning on our engineering side,” said Travis Houge, Team Manager, Wayne Taylor Racing. “We are looking forward to continuing the success of last season. Similar to our other racing endeavors, we have worked hard to build a program that not only wins races but also builds lasting and successful partnerships. We feel we have found that with the Lamborghini Group.”

In the PRO Category, the team will run its highly identifiable Nos. 1 and 10 Prestige Performance Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeos. The No. 1 racecar will again be piloted by series veteran and 2016 Lamborghini Super Trofeo North American PRO AM driver champion Trent Hindman and his new teammate Riccardo Agostini. Agostini, in addition to his responsibilities to the Prestige Performance team, will also focus on bringing home the 2017 Super GT3 Pro Crown in the Italian GT Championship, where he drives for Antonelli Motorsport with teammate Daniel Zampieri. Veteran Hindman arrives at the Austin season opener having already started the year off with a podium finish, as he and the No. 26 BARI Motorsports Oreca FLM09 PC team came in second in class at the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

Alex Popow and Michele Beretta will drive the No 10 Prestige Performance Super Trofeo. Beretta, having most recently competed at Daytona in the #61 Lamborghini Huracán GT3, will also be juggling his time between the North American Super Trofeo series and the Italian GT Series with Ombra Racing. Popow, a veteran sportscar driver, saw success in January at the Rolex 24, where he helped pilot the No. 88 Starworks Motorsports Oreca FLM09 PC to a solid fourth-place finish.

In the PRO AM Category, it was proudly announced the No. 57 Prestige Performance Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo will be driven by the organization’s first all-female driver pairing: Pippa Mann and Jackie Heinricher. Mann, who holds the record of the second fastest female qualifier of all time at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway with a four-lap average at just under 230 mph, is also currently focused on qualifying for her sixth Indianapolis 500. Heinricher, as the only woman who competed at the Lamborghini World Finals in Valencia, Spain, took home two third-place finishes that weekend to add to her already solid podium record in the 2016 North American Super Trofeo series.

The fourth Prestige Performance entry and list of drivers will be named in the near future.

“We are so proud to be a part of the Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America Series and to continue to support its vision for motorsports,” said Mark Laino, Race Program Manager, Prestige Performance. “Our partnership with Wayne Taylor Racing has truly allowed us to build a winning platform for drivers, both professional and amateur. We are committed to this program, its growth and are looking forward to a successful 2017, both on and off the track, for our customers and our organizations.”

The 2017 Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America Series will hold five events during IMSA WeatherTech Championship weekends: May 4 to 6 Circuit of the Americas, June 29 to July 1 at Watkins Glen International, Aug. 4 to 6 at Road America, Aug. 25 to 27 at Virginia International Raceway, and Sept. 22 to 24 at Laguna Seca. The World Finals will be held Nov. 16 and 17 in Imola, Italy.

TRENT HINDMAN, No. 1 Prestige Performance Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo (PRO): “As soon as we got off track in Valencia following the 2016 Super Trofeo World Final, I knew that I wanted to come back and have another opportunity to compete in Lamborghini Super Trofeo with the Prestige Performance and Wayne Taylor Racing team for 2017. Fortunately, through lots of extreme preparation and hard work, we were able to make that happen. I’m excited to make the step up to the full Pro category with Riccardo, whose resume speaks for itself, and to build upon the successes that the Prestige Performance team was able to achieve last year. Very happy to have my great friends at Trim-Tex riding along with us, once again, and I absolutely cannot wait to get to work at COTA with Riccardo and the Prestige Performance crew.” For additional driver information, visit www.trenthindman.com

RICCARDO AGOSTINI, No. 1 Prestige Performance Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo (PRO):“Racing with Wayne Taylor Racing is an opportunity to show my skills in America. Hopefully, the knowledge I’ve gained will help win another championship. I’m very happy to be paired with Trent Hindman in the Pro Class as he won the Pro Am championship last year – great opportunity for me.” For additional driver information, visit www.riccardoagostini.eu/en/

ALEX POPOW, No. 10 Prestige Performance Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo (PRO): “I’m very excited about this upcoming season and being with the Lamborghini Super Trofeos as I’m coming back to GT cars after some years of just driving the Prototypes. I am also looking forward to working with Wayne Taylor Racing and Prestige Performance. I think our team should be very strong from the beginning. We will fight hard to win races and the championship!” For additional driver information, visit www.alexpopow.com

MICHELE BERETTA, No. 10 Prestige Performance Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo (PRO):“I’m really thankful to all the people who made this possible, from Lamborghini to Prestige Performance. I’m really excited to start this new adventure. It is going to be the first year competing in the U.S. and this mean a new world for me to discover. I am looking forward to being on track and to getting the season started.” For additional driver information, visit www.micheleberetta.com/en/

PIPPA MANN, No. 57 Prestige Performance Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo (PRO):“I am thrilled to be joining Prestige Performance and Wayne Taylor Racing for the 2017 Super Trofeo season. Learning a new car, a new team, a new series, and new tracks will be a big learning experience for me, and I’m extremely excited not only to have this opportunity, but to have this opportunity with such a great team.” For additional driver information, visit www.pippamann.com

JACKIE HEINRICHER, No. 57 Prestige Performance Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo (AM): “I am excited to be involved with Prestige and Wayne Taylor Racing in the season effort and for the incredible opportunity in joining a professional team for long-term growth in sportscar racing.” For additional driver information, visit www.jackieheinricher.com

The last few times I have reported to you all, the results have been good, with maybe a few hiccups along the way.

I know that I included the rollercoaster that is the Rolex 24 in my last blog, but luckily Cameron Cassels and I were at least able to walk away from Daytona with a win in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge four hour enduro.

This time we we were not so lucky.

Getting down to Sebring a day earlier than expected due to some impending bad weather in the northeast turned out to be pretty beneficial, as our engineer Marc Manning, Cameron, and I were able to take advantage of the down time to walk the track and finalize strategies for the upcoming weekend.

All of the Porsche Cayman GT4s received a few Balance of Performance penalties post-Daytona, so that was certainly a major concern of ours coming into the weekend.

Argue as much as you want, but at the end of the day the only thing we can do is try our best to work around some of these penalties and continue moving forward as we knew we could. Complaining about it will never make your car magically go faster.

Throughout our test day on Wednesday and official practice on Thursday, it was clear that we had some work to do.

We were strong when compared to the other Porsches, but at the end of the day on Thursday we knew we still had to find more time, consistently, to be able to challenge for victory number two at Sebring.

There was very little doubt in my mind that we could get a little bit closer to the quickest GS cars, but it was going to take more effort and more time. Unfortunately more time was something we did not have.

This time last year, Cameron Cassels and I barely even knew each other or the crew that we were working with, so to walk away with a win at Sebring in our very first attempt was something that certainly caught us by surprise.

Along with that we were able to bring home the first win for the Porsche Cayman GT4 platform in global competition – a huge honor for such a new program at that point in time.

Knowing all of this, I certainly felt some additional pressure on my shoulders to go out and make it two in a row at Sebring for Bodymotion Racing.

Come race day, the new-for-2017 two-hour race format was a scenario we had prepared for quite well, so overall race time and strategy were the least of my concerns.

We were still down on pace but close enough to where I could mount an attack at the end of the race as long as we were in position to do so.

Unfortunately, about 30 minutes in, Cameron reported a vibration in the front end of the car that was consistently getting worse – not a good sign around Sebring.

We wanted him to stay out for as long as possible to reach minimum drive time, which he did, right as a full course yellow came out and three of our wheel studs were completely sheered off due to a badly damaged wheel. Not good!

Cam limped the car back to pit lane, we completed our stop, and I hopped behind the wheel. My heart sank as soon as I got the call over the radio to take the car behind the wall for repairs.

At that point I knew we were out of contention for the win, which was far from ideal, but at least there was some hope that we could make our repairs as quickly as possible and get the car back out on track.

In the end, we finished 10th in class, 4 laps down. Disappointing, but thinking about the grand scheme of things, we still kept ourselves in the race to earn points despite our problems – that’s how a team wins championships.

As always, a big thank you to Cameron Cassels, Trim-Tex Drywall Products, and the Bodymotion Racing team for the phenomenal effort all weekend even though the result was not what we were hoping for.

Next up is Circuit of the Americas at the beginning of May and that cannot come soon enough. We will take this time off to correct our mistakes and find our way back to the top step of the podium in Texas.